FINALS MATCHUPS SET AFTER BUSY SATURDAY:

BIG RUN POWERS SCOTLANDVILLE PAST BROTHER MARTIN (Bill Bumgarner)

A scoring spree for one alongside an offensive drought for the other separated the victorious from the vanquished Saturday afternoon at Southeastern Louisiana in Hammond.

Brother Martin watched a 7-point advantage late in the second quarter disappear beneath an 18-point surge by Scotlandville as the Hornets rolled past the Crusaders 65-49 in the boys Class 5A state basketball semifinals.

Scotlandville, No. 1-seeded and No. 1-ranked, will attempt to secure the school's first state basketball title against McKinley next weekend at the Top 28 Tournament at Louisiana Tech in Ruston. Martin, a six-time state champion, saw its season end with a 21-12 mark.

Trailing 15-11 after one period, Martin opened the second quarter with consecutive 3-point bombs from Jalen Gray and Jordan Cornish to take a 17-15 lead that eventually grew to 25-18 with 55 seconds remaining in the period.

Scotlandville's Deshawn Washington missed a 3-point attempt but was fouled during the shot. He made all three free throws to cut the margin to 25-21. Scotlandville forced a turnover at midcourt and converted the miscue into a dunk by Cleveland Thomas with 41 seconds left. Another turnover led to another basket by Washington. Instead of the Crusaders possibly leading by seven or even nine points, Martin and Scotlandville were tied at 25.

The intermission did not interrupt the Scotlandville momentum. The Hornets answered the second half with 11 consecutive points to take a 33-25 lead at the 5:32 mark.

"A run like that never helps," said Martin coach Bill Gallagher.

A running one-hander by Thomas, a Louisiana-Lafayette signee, at the buzzer provided Scotlandville with a 43-32 lead after three periods.

Martin would close within five points at 45-40 at 4:52 but the Hornets counter-punched every Martin run.

"They got that run and we couldn't catch back," said Gallagher, whose five starters played all but 14 minutes of the game. "No one wanted this more than our guys. I think we just ran out of gas there at the end."

"That (spurt) was the turning point in the game," said Scotlandville coach Carlos Sample. "Our blueprint during the playoff series has been to turn it up a bit in the second half.

"Brother Martin is a scrappy team with a lot of pride and tradition which makes them real hard to beat. I just wanted my guys to play for 32 minutes."

Martin was not particularly effective from the floor or from the line, hitting 20 of 56 shots from the field for 35.7 percent and making just of 4 of 17 on 3-pointers. The Crusaders had 14 turnovers and 34 rebounds to 43 for the Hornets.

Scotlandville (35-2) shot 24 of 54 for 44.4 percent from the floor but could connect on just 2 of 15 beyond the 3-point line. Scotlandville was 15 of 26 from the free-throw line to 5 of 12 for Brother Martin on free throws.

Gray had 16 points for Martin. Cornish scored 14 and Denzel Flemings had 10. "The third quarter has been a weak spot for us most of the season," said Flemings.

Thomas led the Hornets with 23 points, followed by Washington with 13 and Tre'Lun Banks and Zarif Basil with 10 each.

"Scotlandville pressured us more than others teams this year," said Gallagher. "And offensive rebounding has been a problem on and off."

The District 9-5A champions will lose just two senior starters – Flemings and Myron Chapman – to graduation.

"Hopefully," said Cornish. "We'll be back again next season."

Scotlandville has been the state runner-up the last two seasons to Brother Martin and St. Augustine.

Class 5A semifinal

BROTHER MARTIN (21-12)

Jalen Gray 7-9 1-3 16; Jordan Cornish 4-16 3-4 14; Denzel Flemings 5-11 0-0 10; Jabbar Singleton 3-7 0-0 6; Jordan Lumpkins 1-6 0-0 2; Myron Chapman 0-6 1-4 1; Leighton Ventura 0-0 0-0 0; Bryant Boudreaux 0-0 0-0 0; John West 0-1 0-1 0; Nathan Rodgers 0-0 0-0 0; Armand Jacques 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-56 5-12 49.

SCOTLANDVILLE (35-2)

Cleveland Thomas 9-18 5-9 23; Deshawn Washington 3-9 5-5 13; Tre’Lun Banks 5-14 0-0 10; Zarif Basil 4-5 2-6 10; Damien Jones 3-5 2-4 8; Thaddeus Fortune 0-3 1-2 1; Eziekiel Brown 0-0 0-0 0; Jared Sam 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-54 15-26 65.

Brother Martin11 14 7 17 — 49

Scotlandville15 10 18 22 — 65

3-point goals—Brother Martin 4-17 (Jordan Cornish 3-8; Jalen Gray 1-1; Jabbar Singleton 0-1; Myron Chapman 0-1; John West 0-1; Denzel Flemings 0-5), Scotlandville 2-15 (Deshawn Washington 2-7; Tre’Lun Banks 0-5; Thaddeus Fortune 0-2; Cleveland Thomas 0-1). Fouled out—Brother Martin-Jalen Gray. Rebounds—Brother Martin 34 (Myron Chapman 8; Denzel Flemings 8; Jordan Cornish 8), Scotlandville 43 (Cleveland Thomas 14). Assists—Brother Martin 8 (Denzel Flemings 4), Scotlandville 11 (Thaddeus Fortune 4). Total fouls--Brother Martin 19, Scotlandville 14.

ST AUG OUTLASTS OPW TO REACH 4A TITLE TILT (V.K. Jones)

St. Augustine and O. Perry Walker have been in a lot of battles in their hoops rivalry. A matchup with a spot in the Class 4A State championship added to the history of this great series.

The Chargers won their share of battles but the Purple Knights won the war. St. Augustine advanced to the Class 4A state title game with a 47-44 victory at the University Center in Hammond.

The Chargers went on a 6-0 run to start the fourth quarter to take a 42-36 lead but St. Aug responded with a 9-2 run to secure a narrow one point lead for the Knights.

O. Perry Walker's Tyree Griffin drove into the paint with eight seconds left whent Craig Victor blocked his shot out of bounds off Griffin giving St. Aug possession.

Deion Taylor was fouled on the ensuing inbounds and hit two free throws with 4.5 seconds to extend the lead. Griffin's 47 footer at the horn hit the backboard and just missed off the rim.

O. Perry Walker jumped off to a great start to grab a 9-2 lead. Griffin set the tone with a pair of baskets.

Deion Taylor sparked the Purple Knights with a put back dunk. Darren Millet then scored two key layups to give O.P. Walker a 13-8 first quarter lead.

The Knights closed out the first half with a 13-3 run to narrow the Chargers' advantage to 22-21.

St. Augustine star guard Javan Felix tied the game at 26-26 with a three-pointer. Sydie London hit a layup to give St. Aug a 35-33 lead, but Chargers guard Robert Jordan closed out the third quarter with a three-pointer at the horn to give Walker a 36-35 lead at the end of the third quarter.

Rashad Ray led Walker with nine points and four assists.

"We came together as team at the end of the year and we believed that we can win the state championship," said Ray.

Griffin had eight points, four assists and five rebounds.

"We thought that we we're the most skilled team out there but to get a rebound you got to have a little size," said O. Perry Walker Head Coach Brian Gibson. "It was a battle tonight but I'm very proud of our players for the way they played."

Craig Victor led the Purple Knights with 12 points, four rebounds and two assists. London also had 12 points off the bench. Deion Taylor added nine points, nine rebounds and a pair of blocks.

St. Augustine (36-3) will face Peabody for the Class 4A State Championship. The Purple Knights achieved a school record for wins in a season and will be going for consecutive state championships in basketball for the first time in school history.

O. PERRY WALKER (19-8)

Rashad Ray 4-11 0-0 9; Tyree Griffin 3-9 2-2 8; Damond Jackson 3-5 0-0 7; Jamaal Samuel 3-9 0-0 7; Raymond Jackson 2-3 0-0 4; Darrian Millet 2-4 0-0 4; Robert Jordan 1-3 0-0 3; Trea Smith 1-2 0-0 2; Lawrence Brown III 0-1 0-0 0; Warren Bowman 0-0 0-0 0; Nelson Walker 0-0 0-2 0. Totals 19-47 2-4 44.

ST. AUGUSTINE (28-2*)

Craig Victor 5-10 2-2 12; Sydie London 4-9 3-4 12; Deion Taylor 2-7 5-6 9; Roland Daniels, Jr. 2-6 2-2 6; Javan Felix 2-6 0-0 6; Kris Raphael 1-2 0-0 2; Kelan Chairs 0-0 0-0 0; Kendall Jones 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 16-40 12-14 47.

O. Perry Walker  13 9 14 8 — 44

St. Augustine   8 13 14 12 — 47

3-point goals--O. Perry Walker 4-13 (Damond Jackson 1-1; Robert Jordan 1-2; Rashad Ray 1-4; Jamaal Samuel 1-3; Lawrence Brown III 0-1; Tyree Griffin 0-2), St. Augustine 3-11 (Javan Felix 2-5; Sydie London 1-3; Roland Daniels, Jr. 0-1; Deion Taylor 0-2). Fouled out--O. Perry Walker-None, St. Augustine-None. Rebounds--O. Perry Walker 30 (Jamaal Samuel 8), St. Augustine 25 (Deion Taylor 9). Assists--O. Perry Walker 8 (Rashad Ray 4; Tyree Griffin 4), St. Augustine 4 (Javan Felix 2; Craig Victor 2). Total fouls--O. Perry Walker 13, St. Augustine 6.

* - Record includes Louisiana opponents only.

SIMSBORO WINS A THRILLER OVER MADISON PREP (Eric Brown)

The Tigers of Simboro won a rollercoaster ride of a game, 72-70, over Madison Prep in Hammond.

For Madison Prep, the tough loss marked the end of the second year of the program. The Chargers played with just eight player,s four of which are seniors.

“It was a real learning experience,” said Madison Prep head coach Jeffery Jones. “This was uncharted waters for us."

Simsboro trailed 70-64 with just 1:09 to play but the pressure defense forced two big turnovers. Poor free throw shooting doomed the young Chargers. Down six late, the Tigers were not rattled.

“We were about to win this game; that's what I told my assistant,” said coach Lance Waldron said.  “We started peaking at the right time."

We really hurt ourselves,” Jones said. “We had them down but we didn't finish them.”

Simsboro raced out to 18-11 lead after one and took a 41-32 into the locker room after leading by as many as 16.

The third quarter was the time when the worm turned. “I challenged my guys at halftime,” Jones said. "They know we're better than the effort in the first half.” Madison Prep responded with a 17-3 run to seemingly taken command of the game.

Madison Prep was paced by Jarell Martin who scored 15 and pulled down 15 boards.Chad Williams led the scoring charge with 19 and also grabbed eight boards.

Simsboro was led by Daniel Ogunyemi who scored 23 and snatched 15 boards. Duntavious Harris added  17 while Jamarco Brown scored 15 for the Tigers.

Madison Prep shot 7-20 free throws. In the end, the missed chances added to a demise capped by late turnovers thanks to an attacking defense from Simsboro.

“They doubled me late and played more aggressive on defense,” Jarell Martin said after the loss.

Simsboro savored a finish indicative of their preparation and belief. “Our motto all year is have a positive attitude and believe in your team mates,” said Waldron.

Zwolle provides the final roadblock for Simsboro in the Class B state Championship next weekend in Ruston.

SIMSBORO (30-6)

Daniel Ogunyemi 9-23 2-7 23; Duntavious Harris 6-17 1-1 17; Ron Abney 6-15 3-3 15; Jamarco Brown 4-9 2-3 10; Clifford Williams 1-2 1-3 3; Ray Smith 1-3 0-0 2; Xavier Ogunyemi 1-1 0-1 2; Jamel Coleman 0-0 0-0 0; Anterrious Monroe 0-0 0-0 0; Chad Mamon 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 28-70 9-18 72.

MADISON PREP (34-7)

Chad Williams 9-12 1-4 19; Jarell Martin 7-12 0-2 15; Demetrius Blanton 5-12 1-7 11; Ronson Robertson 3-6 0-0 8; Dwain Dinkins 3-7 2-2 8; Ralston Morris 2-6 3-5 7; Romann Guy 1-2 0-0 2; Michael Burns 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-57 7-20 70.

Simsboro   18 23 11 20 — 72

Madison Prep   11 21 23 15 — 70

3-point goals—Simsboro 7-23 (Duntavious Harris 4-10; Daniel Ogunyemi 3-10; Ray Smith 0-1; Ron Abney 0-2), Madison Prep 3-9 (Ronson Robertson 2-5; Jarell Martin 1-4). Fouled out—Simsboro-Clifford Williams, Madison Prep-Jarell Martin. Rebounds—Simsboro 42 (Daniel Ogunyemi 15), Madison Prep 42 (Jarell Martin 15). Assists—Simsboro 12 (Jamarco Brown 4), Madison Prep 10 (Jarell Martin 3). Total fouls—Simsboro 18, Madison Prep 13.

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Other Box Scores

White Castle 64, 

La. New Tech 53

At Lake Charles Civic center

Class 1A semifinal

La. New Tech (16-14)

Deaumante Johnson 3-6 2-3 9, Dohneikus Daniels 1-5 5-5 7, Tray-vious Harris 6-12; 0-2 12, DeMarkis Morris 0-0 0-0 0, Cardarrious Ray 5-12 3-3 16, Kaino Long 1-12 3-4 5, JaCarlius Stromile 0-0 0-0 0, Carderric Johnson 1-2 0-0 2, Vantrez Johnson 0-0 0-0 0, Willie Turks 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 18-51 13-17 53.

White Castle (26-7)

Randy Foster 0-3 0-2 0, Jarrain Jenkins 12-23 4-7 30, Antoine Rogers 0-1 0-0 0, Terrance Fair 2-10 3-6 7, Issac O’Bear 3-10 1-3 9, DeAndre Bellock 6-14 2-3 14, Stephen Jones 1-1 0-0 2, Terrance Taylor 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-63 10-21 64.

La. New Tech 14 7 21 11 — 53

White Castle  21 12 13 18 — 64

3-Point Goals-La. New Tech 4-14 (Deaumante Johnson 1-3, Dohneikus Daniels 0-3, Cardarrious Ray 3-5, Kaino Long 0-3), White Castle 4-17 (Jarrain Jenkins 2-7, Terrance Fair 0-2, Issac O’Bear 2-6, DeAndre Bellock 0-2). Fouled Out: La. New Tech — Cardarrious Ray. Rebounds-La. New Tech 30 (Carderric Johnson 7); White Castle 39 (Jarrain Jenkins 13). Assists-La. New Tech 7 (Kaino Long 3). White Castle 14 (Terrance Fair 5).

Total Fouls-La. New Tech 23, White Castle 19.

Zwolle 88, Fairview 57

At Lake Charles Civic Center-Lake Charles

Class B semifinal

Fairview (32-9)

Jacob Stark 0-0 0-0 0, Keegan Gordon 1-1 0-0 2, Josh Walker 6-10 2-3 13, Hunter Dowies 2-13 0-0 4, Tyler Maddox 7-14 1-3 15, Christian Leonards 0-0 0-0 0, Will Hollins 3-7 0-0 9, Grant Dowies 0-1 0-0 0, Joe Abrusley 4-7 0-0 8, Kol Morel 0-0 0-0 0, Payton Gordon 1-3 0-0 2, Garret Lemieux 1-1 0-0 2, Brennan Maddox 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 25-60 3-6 57.

Zwolle (30-6)

Christopher Ellis 7-15 0-0 14, Calvin Lee 4-11 2-4 10, Martez Carter 8-9 2-3 18, Gary Cutright 2-4 0-0 5, Donovan Williams 0-0 0-0 0, Jabori Washington 0-0 0-0 0, Jd Montgomery 6-16 0-0 16, Arnese Winfield 1-2 0-0 2, Reginal Johnson 1-1 0-0 2, Kane Lewis 1-1 0-0 2, Quinton Montgomery 7-12 0-0 19, Anthony Kimbrough 0-1 0-0 0, Jeffery Washington 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 37-74 6-9 88.

Fairview  12 9 17 19 — 57

Zwolle  24 23 17 24 — 88

3-Point Goals: Fairview 4-15 (Walker 1-5, Dowies 0-1, T. Maddox 0-3, Hollins 3-5, Gordon 0-1); Zwolle 8-20 (Lee 0-1, Cutright 1-1, Jd Montgomery 4-12, Q. Montgomery 3-5, Kimbrough 0-1). Fouled Out: None. Rebounds-Fairview 27 (Walker 2, Dowies 5, T. Maddox 7, Leonards 1, Hollins 1, Abrusley 6, Morel 1, Gordon 3, B. Maddox 1); Zwolle 33 (Ellis 8, Lee 4, Carter 3, Cutright 4, Williams 1, Jd Montgomery 2, Winfield 7, Q. Montgomery 4). Assists-Fairview 11 (Stark 1, Dowies 1, T. Maddox 3, Hollins 2, Abrusley 3, Gordon 1). Zwolle 18 (Ellis 1, Carter 4, Cutright 6, Washington 2, Jd Montgomery 1, Lewis 1.

Girls box score

St. Thomas More 67, Benton 47

At Lake Charles Civic Center

Class 4A semifinal

Benton (32-6)

Emma Owen 0-0 0-0 0, Megan Fream 0-1 0-0 0, LuLu Perry 9-21 9-13 30, Destiney Coley 1-1 0-0 2, Rebecca Thompson 2-6 5-8 9, Makenzie Mathews 1-2 0-1 2, Brianna Moore 0-0 0-0 0, Allie Dillon 0-0 0-0 0, Angelica Little 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 15-35 14-22 47.

St. Thomas More (35-2)

Allison Derrise 1-4 0-0 2, Kia Wilridge 3-14 0-2 6, Jodi Quinn 0-2 2-6 2, Lauren Olivier 2-8 0-1 6, Paije Hall 9-14 4-11 22, Keke Veal 7-12 2-2 16, Courtney Chain 4-8 0-0 9, Payton Walker 2-3 0-0 , Kourtney Blackwell 0-0 0-1 0. Totals 28-65 8-23 67.

Benton 10 18 13 6 — 47

St. Thomas More 19 21 12 15 — 67

3-Point Goals-Benton 3-6 (LuLu Perry 3-6), St. Thomas More 3-14 (Allison Derise 0-1, Kia Wildridge 0-1, Lauren Olivier 2-7, Keke Veal 0-3, Courtne Chain 1-2). Fouled Out: Benton - LuLu Perry. Rebounds-Benton 28 (LuLu Perry 7); St. Thomas More 35 (Paije Hall 14). Assists-Benton 1 (Makenzie Mathews 1). St. Thomas More 9 (Keke Veal 4). Total Fouls-Benton 19, St. Thomas More 22.

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SEMIFINAL SCORES & FINALS MATCHUPS:

First Guaranty Bank/

Southeast Regional

At SLU University Center-Hammond

Thursday

Girls Class 2A: Curtis 62, University 43

Boys Class 2A: Curtis 71, Mansfield 37

Girls Class 4A: Salmen 51, Vandebilt Catholic 42

Friday

Boys Class 1A: Christian Life 69, Souther Lab 41

Girls Class 3A: Albany 64, St. James 62 (2OT)

Boys Class 2A: Riverside Academy 64, St. Thomas Aquinas 63

Saturday

Boys Class 5A: Scotlandville 65, Brother Martin 49

Boys Class B: Simsboro 72, Madison Prep 70

Boys Class 4A: St. Augustine 47, O. Perry Walker 44

Jeff Davis Bank/

Southwest Regional

At Lake Charles Civic Center-Lake Charles

Thursday

Girls Class B: Fairview 89, Anacoco 31

Girls Class B: Lacassine 71, Florien 43

Friday

Boys Class B: Zwolle 88, Fairview 57

Girls Class 2A: Iota 59, Pickering 53

Saturday

Girls Class 5A: Lafayette 44, Ouachita 39

Boys Class 1A: White Castle 64, La. New Tech-Plain Dealing 53

Girls Class 4A: St. Thomas More 67, Benton 47

Boys Class 5A: McKinley 53, Natchitoches Central 52

Super 1 Foods/

North Regional

At ULM Fant-Ewing Coliseum-Monroe

Thursday

Girls Class C: Saline 51, Dubach 48

Girls Class C: Pelican 44, Plainview (30-7) 39

Girls Class 1A: La. New Tech-Plain Dealing 73, North Central 48

Friday

Boys Class C: Pelican 59, Phoenix 58

Boys Class 3A: Bossier 54, Madison Parish 44

Girls Class 5A: Southwood 46, Northshore 32

Saturday

Boys Class C: Dubach 52, New Living Word 44

Girls Class 1A: Tensas 63, vs. West St. John 54

Boys Class 3A: Richwood 68, Glen Oaks 56

Girls Class 3A: Loyola 48, Westlake 35

Boys Class 4A: Peabody 47, Neville 42

Top 28 pairings

At Thomas Assembly Center

At Louisiana Tech University, Ruston

Days, times to be announced

Girls

Class 5A

Lafayette (34-0) vs. Southwood (36-0)

Class 4A

St. Thomas More (33-2) vs. Salmen (28-1)

Class 3A

Loyola Prep (33-3) vs. Albany (31-3)

Class 2A

Iota (34-3) vs. John Curtis (31-1)

Class 1A

Louisiana New Tech-Plain Dealing (27-4) vs. Tensas (32-1)

Class B

Lacassine (38-1) vs. Fairview (37-5)

Class C

Pelican (31-3) vs. Saline (37-4)

Boys

Class 5A

Scotlandville (35-2) vs. McKinley (23-11)

Class 4A

Peabody (34-1) vs. St. Augustine (36-3)

Class 3A

Bossier (31-3) vs. Richwood (30-6)

Class 2A

John Curtis (29-3) vs. Riverside Academy (33-9)

Class 1A

White Castle (26-7) vs. Christian Life (25-6)

Class B

Zwolle (41-4) vs. Simsboro (30-6)

Class C

Pelican (24-7) vs. Dubach (18-15)